From Le Figaro with AFP
Posted 58 minutes ago
Houthi rebels regularly attack civilian ships in the Red Sea. HOUTHI MILITARY MEDIA/Portal
The United Kingdom is “ready to take direct action against the Houthi rebels in Yemen,” who are increasingly carrying out attacks on merchant ships in the Red Sea, British Defense Secretary Grant Shapps wrote in the Daily Telegraph on Monday. These warnings from London come as tensions continue to rise in the Red Sea, through which 12% of global trade passes.
HMS Diamond. – / AFP
On Sunday, the US military said it had sunk three Houthi ships after attacks on a container ship owned by the Danish transport company Maersk. According to a spokesman for the movement, ten rebels were killed in this attack. The United Kingdom, part of the international coalition fighting Houthi attacks in the Red Sea, sent the British destroyer HMS Diamond to the region in mid-December.
“A test for the international community”
In an article titled “We must protect the Red Sea,” Grant Shapps says Britain is “ready to take direct action” against the Houthi rebels. “We will not hesitate to take additional measures against threats to freedom of navigation in the Red Sea,” he continues, recalling that HMS Diamond has already shot down an attack drone that targeted merchant shipping. The rebel attacks are “a test for the international community,” says Grant Shapps.
Since the Oct. 7 war between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip began, the Houthis, who control much of Yemen and are close to Iran, have increased attacks in the Red Sea on ships they say are “affiliated with Israel.” Solidarity with the Palestinian territory bombed and besieged by Israel. Iran has been accused of helping Yemeni rebels carry out these attacks, but the Islamic Republic has always denied providing them with military equipment.
Also read: Escorts, interceptions, attacks in Yemen… How the anti-Houthi coalition could act in the Red Sea
On Sunday, British Foreign Secretary David Cameron said he had spoken to his Iranian counterpart Hossein Amir-Abdollahian about Houthi attacks “that threaten the lives of innocent people and the international economy.” “I have made it clear that Iran bears part of the responsibility for preventing these attacks, given its long-standing support for the Houthis,” David Cameron wrote on X.